The present invention relates to a new and distinct variety of the Compositae family. The new variety, a member of the species Osteospermum fruticosum (L.) Norl., named xe2x80x98Kakegawa AU2xe2x80x99. This species is one of several species of Osteospermum that are commonly referred to as Cape Daisy.
The new variety originated as a first generation hybrid seedling from a controlled hybridization. This hybridization was done in 1994, at the Sakata Seed Corporation, Chogo Research Station in Chogo Prefecture, Japan. The objective of this breeding program was to develop plants with suitable form for pot culture that also possessed large flowers that would stay open into the evening hours. The flowers of Osteospermum fruticosum (L.) Norl. usually close under low light conditions, such as in the evening.
The female parent of the new variety originated from a breeding population possessing the characteristic of flowers that stayed open under low light conditions. in 1992, ten seedlings were selected from a 150 plant population and randomly intercrossed. In 1993, the first generation progeny from this work was grown out to mature flowering plants. From this generation, breeding line 303 was selected. In 1994, line 303 was used as the female parent in a hybridization with breeding line B-27. The first generation hybrid seedlings from this cross were grown out to mature flowering plants and line G6-815 was selected for its pink and white petal coloration and flowers that stayed open in low light conditions. For three successive years G6-815 was asexually reproduced, grown to maturity and evaluated for stability and trait desirability. In 1998, G6-815 was given the name xe2x80x98Kakegawa AU2xe2x80x99. Since this time the new variety has been trialed and vegetatively propagated at the Sakata Seed Corporation facility in Salinas, Calif. The new variety has been stable and fixed in this environment also.
The new variety has been observed under greenhouse and outdoor conditions in California and Japan. The phenotype of the new plant may vary somewhat with variations in temperature, day length, light intensity or soil media conditions. The observations noted below have been using multiple 8 month old plants grown in Salinas, Calif. under the following conditions. Shoot tips were rooted in soil plug trays in August. After developing a root ball the plants were transplanted into six-inch diameter pots and grown outdoors through the winter to provide vernalization for flowering. In December, buds were pinched off to promote branching. Winter night temperatures averaged 40 to 50 degrees Fahrenheit. By May of the following year the plants were in full bloom. Average summer daytime temperatures in Salinas range from 60 to 75 degrees Fahrenheit depending on the month and the amount of coastal marine layer cloud cover.